Attraction magazine has partnered with the National Park Service Chesapeake Bay Office and Chesapeake Conservancy to help readers find their next adventure. Each month we’ll feature a new place from their helpful website, FindYourChesapeake.com. There, you can also sign up for an e-newsletter, Trips and Tips, that delivers fresh ideas to your inbox each week.
Ready to try something new? At FindYourChesapeake.com, also find expert advice on experiences like birdwatching, fishing, camping, and hiking. Their team also developed content to help people explore the Chesapeake virtually so folks can stay safe at home during the pandemic.
This month, the spotlight is on another Eastern Shore gem. If you love learning everything there is to know about the Chesapeake Bay’s history and ecology, the Sultana Education Foundation is an invaluable resource. And if you like combining education about the Chesapeake Bay with being out on the water, Sultana has you and your whole family covered.
Photograph courtesy of Chesapeake Bay Program.
It is the mission of the foundation to provide transformative educational experiences about the natural and human history of the Chesapeake Bay, while offering solutions to the restoration and preservation of this national treasure. To that end, the Sultana Foundation now serves more than 14,000 students and teachers annually with state-approved programs in history and environmental science.
But Sultana education is fun…because most of the foundation’s programs are outdoors and on the water!
Kayak public paddles allow for up-close and personal experiences with the environment. This summer’s schedule begins May 1 and includes the White Perch, Oysters and Indians, Middle Chester, Blackwater, Lotus, and Full Moon paddles. But sign up soon as these paddles fill up fast at https://sultanaeducation.org/01public-paddle.
Families and friend groups (a maximum of nine participants) can also arrange for their own guided two- to three-hour excursions exploring, fishing, seining or just moseying down the river. To arrange or for more information, email paddling@sultanaeducation.org.
The foundation recently launched Sultana Sessions, a new free online education program, hosted by staff, featuring special guests, and a Q&A post-program panel. Offered every other Thursday, April and May topics include a walking tour of historic Chestertown, aquaponics, and a discussion of the tribes and cultures that inhabited the area prior to Jamestown. For details, visit https://sultanaeducation.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/03/S_Sessions_Schedule.pdf.
Stay tuned for updates (pending COVID regulations/restrictions) on the foundation’s public sails and much-anticipated return of the Downrigging Festival this fall. Visit https://sultanaeducation.org/03public-sail/ for information on public sails and https://downrigging.org about the Downrigging Festival.